Scott Kelby's Digital Photography Tips: What Not to Shoot with Your 50mm Lens

Should you shoot a close-up head
shot with a 50mm lens? Only if you don’t care about working for that client again, because they’re not going
to be happy with the results. Scott Kelby explains that when it comes to
shooting portraits of women, almost any longer lens would probably be a better choice.

From the book

From the book

Don’t shoot portraits of women. Well, certainly not close-up portraits anyway, and for
one simple reason—it’s just not flattering. When you shoot people with a 50mm lens up
close, they generally look a bit distorted and that’s the last thing you want in a portrait.
That’s why you see the pros shooting with longer lenses so often (I usually shoot with
a 70–200mm lens out around the 150mm to 200mm end of the lens most of the time).
These longer lengths create a compression that’s very flattering in portraits, so people
just plain look better (and why wouldn’t you want your subjects to look better?). Now, can
you shoot a full-length bridal portrait from the back of the room with a 50mm lens? Sure.
Can you shoot group shots with a 50mm? Absolutely. Should you shoot a close-up head
shot? Only if you don’t care about working for that client again, because they’re not going
to be happy with the results. The 50mm is great for some instances, but when it comes to
shooting portraits of women, almost any longer lens would probably be a better choice.
By the way, I didn’t need to mention the whole “don’t shoot portraits of women with a
fisheye lens,” did I? (Kidding. I hope.)